Introduction

Information transfer, then, takes this a step further with the addition of communication. Whether through person to person interaction or via some artifact or medium this movement and flow of information is the quintessential objective of the librarian or information professional.

Information transfer need not be scholarly, as shown by Assignment One, which was a look at information transfer in general and personal information needs and seeking habits. While usually discussed in academic circles, information transfer may be as simple as someone reading the newspaper or scanning an office memo. However, academic librarians must be cognizant of the information transfer process and aware of differences that exist among academic disciplines.

To facilitate service to his or her community, an information professional must first understand its needs, and in an academic setting there is no more important role for a subject specialist than that of liaison to the instructors within their field or department. A university’s library ought to be the center of study and scholarship for both students and professors, but a dearth of representation within an institution may create an irreparable rift between the library and its community.

One theory relative to the dissemination and diffusion of information is Constructivism, an educational psychology theory describing how an individual incorporates new experiences into their already developed worldview (Aber, 2007). Grounded in Pragmatism and Radical Empiricism, Constructivism applies well to the discipline of Stage Management examined in this report, as will later become clear. Another theory of information transfer, Sense-Making, is heavily grounded in the theories of Brenda Dervin (Aber, 2007). Confronted with a gap in one’s knowledge, an individual will try and create a context in which new information can bridge this gap (Dervin, 1992). Thus, information transfer from a Sense-Making perspective involves much communication among participants as they attempt to understand one another’s perspective and fill in their knowledge collectively.

Information Transfer in the Fine Arts

The professor utilized The Stage Management Handbook by Daniel A. Ionazzi, a text she had used since its publication in 1992. The reason this text had been so effective for so long lies in its broad appeal to both the novice and experience student of stage management. Ionazzi’s text uses a step-by-step approach without appearing condescending or basic. Presented from a professional perspective, it prepares the student for actual practice rather than becoming bogged down by management theory. Ionazzi’s text first came to the professor’s attention as a desk copy sent to her by the publisher for her to review. Apart from publisher desk copies, the professor also researches potential works herself using the internet. She does almost no research in the library. Aside from this primary text, the professor also uses supplementary materials. While not required, students are encouraged to purchase these works as she discovers them. Currently she uses The Art and Craft of Stage Management by Doris Schneider.

Until the spring of 2007, the Theatre Department I investigated did not have a subject specialist or liaison. While this rift is being mended by the newly filled position, years of separation have taken their toll. Due in part to this perceived lack of representation in library programs and resources, but also from the hands-on nature of the course, the professor does not recommend students to resources in the library.

The professor lacks technical skills, which occasionally creates barriers to multi-media presentations. Each student is expected to stage manage one of the productions during the same academic year as the class, which can create schedule conflicts. The responsibilities the professor has as both instructor and Managing Director also come into conflict.

With the relatively new position of Performing Arts Librarian, the professor hopes to reconnect with the university’s library. Her hope is that a video documenting the stage management process may be found, or possibly created with the library’s help.

Upon observing the class, I was first struck by the intimate nature of the classroom. A small conference room with a single long table accommodated 12 students, the instructor, and me. Class began with a five minute quiz over terminology from a chapter in the text. Media included a whiteboard, LCD projector, and TV/VCR station. These were not utilized in the session I observed. Food and drink were permitted, and the atmosphere was one of casual interaction among equal contributors rather than student and instructor.

Following the brief quiz, the professor passed out a series of handouts and discussed them with the students. These included a revised course schedule, a sample props plot from the opera Madame Butterfly, and the professor’s own Theatre Code of Ethics, a code of conduct intended for student actors and crew members. The following 35 minutes of class time involved a very animated discussion of these two handouts and their use. The professor surprised me by incorporating me into the class discussion, asking me to relate some of my experiences as a stage manager, both professionally and as a student. While this broke down the unobtrusiveness of my observations somewhat, I was impressed by the professor’s improvisation in utilizing a resource that had presented itself. Overall, this added to the experience rather than detracting from it. Class ended with a progress update from each student on their respective assignments and productions.

With the class involving very little in the way of scholarly research, the library offers few incentives. However, this may change as the new position of Performing Arts Librarian becomes more involved. Unfortunately, the practical nature of the course work makes the library’s involvement difficult, and the long absence of a liaison may have irreparably damaged their relationship. Helpful resources of a practical nature incorporated into the collection would be of the greatest benefit, particularly if the multimedia desires of the professor could be fulfilled. Archived documentation of various stage managers would provide a fascinating and useful resource for students new to this area.

The data I gathered provided some very eye opening results. I had not realized how little the Theatre Department utilized the library’s resources, and what an important role academic librarians play as liaisons to their departments. My familiarity with the subject material and rapport with the professor was a definite asset to the interview and observation process, but the subject matter itself proved difficult to relate to library services. Given the opportunity to begin again, I might be tempted to select a different area of study to observe, although this would be somewhat outside the parameters of this assignment. Overall, however, I feel my study was very successful, and feel enlightened by the experience.

Information Transfer in the Life Sciences

In the course of studying or producing scholarly works for research purposes, a researcher, whether student or professor, will produce a great many papers, articles, and even entire books, either as part of coursework or for publication. For the most part, these works will be in the form of peer reviewed articles, easily accessed through various academic journals or collected in a library’s electronic databases. However, many technical reports, meeting agendas, student submitted essays, and other similar works remain forever unpublished, and these works unfortunately cannot be accessed by other researchers despite the many hours of work devoted to creating them and their applicability to various topics. These sometimes rough, always valuable materials comprise what the information industry has dubbed “gray literature.”

First coined by British librarians, the term gray literature refers to works in unconventional formats, which fall outside the usual means of access due to limited printing or poor bibliographic control (Aber, 2007). Mathews described gray literature as “the proverbial needle in the haystack…. not commercially published and is typically composed of technical reports, working papers, business documents, and conference proceedings (2004).” Gray literature is further plagued by a lack of editorial control and very limited indexing, though despite this these resources continue to appear in scholarly publications (Mathews, 2004). Fortunately, the continued expansion of the free internet and inception of various commercial databases collecting these works has created increased access to gray literature; Mathews goes on to list a wide array of these sites, touching largely on the technical sciences but pertinent to education and some social sciences as well, demonstrating how broad this issue of gray literature is and how librarianship as a profession must embrace its dissemination and diffusion.

The textbook primarily utilized by the professor for Physical Activity and Public Health is Physical Activity and Health, edited by C. Bouchard, S. Blair, and W. Haskell. A fairly recent text, published in 2006, the interviewee selected it based on both its broad appeal and its approach to physical activity and sedentarism as it relates to lifelong health. The text is suitable for students focused on kinesiology as a discipline, but can also be applied to preventive medicine and human biology programs. While most if not all students enrolled in the course purchased their own copy of the text, another copy was placed on course reserves at the main university library. While the professor relied largely on this main textbook for lecture and activity, she also drew from her own personal studies, as her own recently completed dissertation dealt heavily with this same subject matter. Also available are two supplementary texts, Physical Activity Epidemiology by R. Dishman, R. Washburn, and G. Heath and Psychology of Exercise: Integrating Theory and Practice by C. Lox, K. Ginis, and S. Petruzzello. These two works are also available to students via course reserves. Curiously, the course reserves module lists these items as part of Psychological Dynamics of Physical Activity; the reserve specialist could offer no explanation of this incongruity, and unfortunately the interviewee has been unavailable as of this time to comment further on the matter (personal communication, November 12, 2007).

During the course of the semester, one of the more noteworthy topics which spanned several lectures involved physical activity and health among various populations. This related to types and frequency of exercise and general fitness as it pertains to gender, ethnicity, and age group. The interviewee relayed this information to the class through a series of lectures, utilizing both the text and an online resource containing statistical data. This was presented in a classic lecture fashion, involving Power Point lecture and supplementary small group discussions.

Related to this same topic, students will expand their knowledge of health and exercise habits of these various groups through a cooperative research project, culminating in a presentation to their classmates on a group of their choice. Presentations may focus on specific age groups, ethnicities, or either gender. While students are given much leeway in deciding upon whom they will focus their research, no two groups are allowed to present on the same population. Presentations may take any format, but clear contribution must be exhibited by all members and a full bibliography must be provided.

The relative youth of the professor has, according to her, contributed to her comfort level with using various technologies. Her newness to teaching can occasionally hinder her, particularly as untenured members of the faculty lack certain protections which may stifle creative flexibility. Respective to the assignment, the greatest barrier lies with the students’ abilities to construct coherent presentations cooperatively and basing their work on authoritative sources. While sensible enough at this point in their academic careers to avoid Wikipedia, they become frustrated when suitable materials are not available online. To alleviate this frustration, the interviewee and her students alike turn to the university library’s Kinesiology Subject Specialist and Liaison.

The interviewee spoke highly of the Kinesiology Subject Specialist and Liaison, and her efforts to assist students with this or any project. The library’s kinesiology subject guide provides links to useful and authoritative web sites, databases, and books. Further, options for understanding RefWorks and Interlibrary Services are offered, as well as an Instant Messenger interface, allowing students to contact the library’s subject specialist with questions at any time, usually with an immediate response. The interviewee had nothing further to add or request of the library, but expressed that hers was likely a unique situation and all disciplines would benefit from such attention.

For my observation, I chose to sit in on a lecture period, as the professor felt more comfortable with my presence at one of these sessions. Although a lab session may have been of greater interest, I did not want to press the point and respected this request. The room could have been a classroom anywhere: the architecture of the building is fairly nondescript, in a style which is most closely associated with Richardson Romanesque. The room itself was of medium size, large enough to accommodate 30 to 40 students. Media included an LCD projector and screen, as well as a whiteboard.

The lecture dealt with exercise and physical fitness and how these relate to mental health. This included a Power Point presentation and accompanying lecture, though the process was far from one sided and allowed for ample comments from the students. Handouts of the slides were handed out prior the lecture to facilitate note taking. While most of the class was animated and engaged, no pressure to interact was applied and several students did not speak throughout the session. While I personally found the subject matter very interesting, I was completely un-initiated to the topic and felt lost on more technical aspects. My humanities educational background combined with my lack of ambition regarding physical fitness contributed heavily to this. Despite this personal disconnect with the subject matter, I felt that, as an information professional, I could connect these students with valuable resources given enough training and time to acclimate myself to the task. Following the lecture, only a few minutes of class time remained, which were then given over to small group discussion. As class drew to a close, students returned to the class as a whole to relay any new observations.

Most surprising to me in this process was the level of scholasticism involved in kinesiology as a discipline. I had expected greater emphasis on practical application rather than research, and so the group presentation project came as a surprise. The reliance on individual research, such as theses and dissertations within the discipline, also came as a shock. I had pictured the need for gray literature of this kind to be more prevalent in the sciences, but less so in this particular area of study.

Conclusion

While I remain disappointed in the initial lack of response from some faculty asked to participate, I was ultimately very pleased with not only the interview and classroom interaction, but, on a personal level, at the exceptional service provided by a member of my own institution. Finding such exemplary information service should not be so rare, although it must certainly be so or I would find it less remarkable. I am also humbled by how very wrong my assumptions about the discipline were, and in the future will endeavor to let go of any preconceived notions about an area of study. The discipline of kinesiology is one of incredible depth, and I believe that I could study any subject or community and thoroughly enjoy learning about that discipline and serving those students and professors by connecting them to needed resources.

Reference